Startup Story
Arashnee Ramjuguth is the Founder of Refresha Trading Enteprises based in Durban, South Africa. The business is focused on providing clean purified drinking water to the community of South Africa. Refresha Trading Enterprises is a LEVEL 1 BBBEE owned custom bottled water company offering a range of products and services. Arashnee’s mission is to ensure clean, purified drinking water is affordable and accessible to the South African people. Her business aspires to be the go-to place to create an impactful branded bottled water experience by helping its clients to grow their personal brand or businesses through branding water products.
LoA spoke to Arashnee Ramjuguth about her business and brand building journey and her aspirations for the future.
What does your company do?
We Brand it, You Drink it! At Refresha Trading Enterprises we pride ourself in creating unique personalized experience by customizing in-house purified water and refreshing juices with your own distinctive label. At Refresha Trading our aim is to be your one-stop cold beverage shop where you can purchase your full-basket offering with ease – from bottled water, a range of juices, gifting needs as well coming on board and supporting our many campaigns regarding education of water and plastic issues. Whether you want to purchase our in-house products, want to custom label them as per your brand or become a part of our community projects.
Our purpose is simple. To evoke a positive feeling around your brand and organisation at the same time providing refreshing, high quality purified water at an affordable price. Branded bottled water is an excellent form of advertising that corporates and individuals can use not only as a marketing and brand awareness tool but also to give back to the community.
“Our mission is to ensure clean, purified drinking water is affordable and accessible to the South African people. We aspire to be the go-to place to create your impactful branded bottled water experience.”
What inspired you to start your company?
Drinking water does more than just quench your thirst — it’s essential to keeping your body functioning properly and feeling healthy. Water is essential for living and the human body can’t survive for too long without it. Our mission – is to ensure clean, purified drinking water is affordable and accessible to the South African people. We aspire to be the go-to place to create your impactful branded bottled water experience by helping our clients to grow their personal brand or businesses through branding water products.
Why should anyone use your service or product?
At Refresha Trading Enterprises we want to connect your brand/event to an aesthetic BPA free bottle with purified water / juices that aims at supplying the best hydration for your customers/guests
Tell us a little about your team
We employ staff from the local community who have no understanding how to work within the production environment. We feel blessed to be able to guide and train the staff to be able to achieve a high-quality end product. We also empower the staff with basic hygiene and admin knowledge.
“We employ staff from the local community who have no understanding how to work within the production environment. We feel blessed to be able to guide and train the staff to be able to achieve a high-quality end product.”
“I would encourage you to always remember your vision and mission of why you started the company. When challenges present themselves, go back to your vision and mission and continue with faith.”
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
Being a Food Technologist by profession, I walked into the business with knowledge of how to manage a production environment, but no knowledge AT ALL how to manage a business. I did not have the passion for Accounting as a subject at school hence I had an idea that understanding this was vital. I had no idea how or where to Begin. If I look back now, I would strongly advise any early start up owner to spend some time understanding the basics e.g. how to manage cash flow, managing accounts, checking your bank statements at the end of the month. As simple as it may appear, If you don’t know, YOU DONT KNOW, and that has many ripple effects. I also suggest start up’s to read and try to understand the many dynamics of business if this is your first business. The journey has come with challenges. However, I would encourage you to always remember your vision and mission of why you started the company. When challenges present themselves, go back to your vision and mission and continue with faith.
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
We look to the future at a new factory location with a fully automated production line and employing a minimum of 20 new staff. We also look to the future with many new collaborators who share the same vision as Refresha Trading Enterprises and have come on board to support our many campaigns regarding education of water and plastic issues.
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
My customers’ appreciation of the products we supplied to them by sharing pics on social media. My staff learning and improving on a daily basis. Customers sharing pics how they are now re-using empty plastic bottles after we had sent out inspirational videos to them.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
Never give up on yourself. Others may not have the confidence in you. YOU have the confidence in YOU.
Contact or follow Refresha Trading Enterprises
Email: arashnee@refreshatrading.com
Website: http://www.refreshatrading.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/refreshatrading/
Why LoA loves it…
If you have a clear, defined mission and vision for your business, and one that can positively impact lives and the environment, it will keep you focused on achieving success. In the case of Refresha Trading Enterprises, founder Arashnee Ramjuguth is on a mission to make clean drinking water accessible and affordable to people. She achieves that goal by working with her customers on brand opportunities through her bottled water products, and through education on water and the environment. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo, Lionesses of Africa